What's Left Of Me
by Can'tBeBroken
Summary: Two people, coming from two different states and two different situations end up sitting beside each other on a plane trying to escape from their lives. AU. MerMark
1. Leaving

_**Summery: Two people, coming from two different states and two different situations end up sitting beside each other on a plane trying to escape from their lives. AU. MerMark**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Grey's Anatomy.**_

_**--**_

_**Boston, Massachusetts…**_

The strange sound continued as he walked down the hall listening cautiously. When he finally reached the end of the hall and stood outside her door, he could hear a banging noise. Giving the door a light tape, he pushed the door lightly with his foot and looked in. She stood over her suitcase throwing random things into it.

"Meredith?" He said in a quiet broken voice.

Her eyes traveled up to him as she pushed the hair out of her face. The pain was written all over her face. Tears lined the bottom of her eyes.

"_Great job in there, Dr. Grey." The small doctor said giving her a short nod. _

"_You too, Dr. Song." She gave a small smile back before heading over to the nurses' station. "Have you seen, Dr. Shepherd?" _

"_On-call room." She glanced up and did a double take when she noticed who it was. "I mean… I think he is. But he might be… somewhere else." She stammered. _

_She gave the young nurse a strange look before nodding. "I'll check it out."_

_Turning, she wondered why the nurse was still watching as she walked towards the on-call room. She pushed the door open expecting to see her fiancé asleep in the bed. Instead, she found him and his scrub nurse. _

She shook her head at him. "Walk away, Derek." Her voice was level, but low and broken. "Just walk away."

"I can't do that, Mer. I can't just walk away."

"And why not?" She yelled as tears started to come. "I don't want you here."

"It was a mistake." He pleaded.

"I didn't ever want this, Derek." She pulled off her ring. "I don't want any of this." With that she threw the ring at him. "You made your choice a long time ago. Now I'm making mine."

--

**New York City, New York…**

"Addison?" He called as he walked through the door of townhouse that he and his girlfriend, Addison, shared. "Addi, you here?"

There was an odd banging sound coming from upstairs. Putting down his things, he trudged up the stairs. He walked down the hall to their bedroom and pushed the door open. "Addi?" She stood by the bed carefully packing her things into multiple suitcases. "What are you doing? Is Michael sending you out of town again?"

"I'm leaving, Mark." Addison admitted.

"Leaving? Where? Until when?"

She took a deep breath. "I'm not coming back."

"What? What the hell does that mean?"

She walked over to him putting her hand on his arm. "You have to understand. I got a really great job offer… and I took it."

"Then, I'll come with you. Just give me a week to get a job."

"You're not coming. I need to get out on my own."

"I love you, Addi."

A tear rolled off her cheek. "I can't love you, Mark. I don't want to stay here anymore."

"What are you talking about? This doesn't make any sense. We've been together for over three years."

"I want you to understand. It'll be easier if I leave. You're not ready to settle down."

He stood speechless for a second as she continued to pack. "That's it? You're leaving?"

She looked at him sadly. "It's for the best."

"You can't keep saying 'for the best' and expect it to make sense to me. Why the hell are you leaving? And don't say because it will be easier or because I'm not ready to settle down."

"I want a baby, Mark. I want to get married and buy a big house and raise kids in it."

"We can do that."

"You don't want that, Mark. You're not ready for a family and responsibilities like that. You may never be ready. But my clock is ticking, and I want a baby."

"Just because you don't think I'm ready doesn't mean I'm don't want all of that stuff." With that he turned and walked out slamming the door on the way.


	2. Memories

**New York City, New York…**

He managed to keep his emotions at bay long enough to get to the airport. But as he stood looking for a flight, he couldn't help but feel the pain of his wounds radiating all over his body. Hearing Addison saying all those things, seeing her pick up, and leave was like a blow directly to the heart. It was hard for him to even conceive the thought of her doing so much damage to him in one quick blow. He had been in love with her for nearly five years since she moved to New York.

Walking up to the desk, he put his bag by his feet. "I need a ticket to Nassau, Bahamas."

"Alright. There's a layover in Boston." The man replied as he started to type in the appropriate information.

"Whatever, I don't care." He said running his fingers through his hair before paying and checking in his bags.

"Gate 20, Flight 239." The man said. Mark nodded and headed away to the gate.

_He had just finished his residency only seven months before the new neonatal surgeon joined the New York General staff. It was ten o'clock, which was the latest had had gotten to go to work in a long time. He pulled his scrub top on feeling quite odd in the empty locker room. The door opened, and he leaned to see who was coming in. A gorgeous redhead walked in. She wore a pencil skirt, blouse, and expensive shoes. He was quickly interested in the new woman and waited for her to walk over. _

"_Hi." She gave him a soft smile._

"_Hi." He nodded back at her while putting something in his locker. _

"_Are you an attending here?"_

"_Yep… Plastics."_

"_I'm Addison Montgomery, the new neonatal surgeon."_

_He turned to her giving her hand a soft shake. "Mark Sloan."_

He quickly shook the thoughts out of his head when he heard his flight being called. Standing up, he picked up his ticket and headed towards the terminal.

--

**Boston, Massachusetts…**

Standing in front the large screen of flights at the Boston Airport, she looked for a flight that could take her away to someplace that was the complete opposite of Boston. Somewhere warm. Somewhere where Derek wouldn't expect her to go. Seattle was obvious. It was where her parents were. It was where she had grown up. He would obviously check there. Taking a deep breath, she pulled her suitcase behind her as she made her way to the counter.

"Hi, how may I help you?" The young woman asked.

"Can I get one first class ticket for the flight to Nassau, Bahamas?"

"Of course."

Meredith quickly paid and checked her luggage in before grabbing her ticket and heading towards the gate. Once she was safely through security, she sat down in one of the chairs.

"Flight 239 from New York has just arrived at gate 12."

Her phone vibrated again. She ignored it knowing that it was Derek…for the fourteenth time.

_She had known of Derek Shepherd through work since the beginning of her internship. He was a resident when she started, but she hardly knew him. He had just been the handsome neurosurgeon who had practically every woman in the hospital eating out of the palm of his hand. It wasn't until her second year as a resident (three years after starting at Boston Regional) that she officially met him when they worked on a case together. He was 'instantly intoxicated by her' and quickly tried to pursue the young cardiothoracic surgeon. She was hesitant, but eventually his charm caused her cave. Two years into their relationship, they hit some major rocks when Meredith's mother was in a serious car accident sending Meredith shuttling between Seattle and Boston. When she was in Boston, she spent most of her time trying to catch up in her residency. She and Derek got distant hardly having time for each other. _

_She pushed the door open to her house putting her suitcase by the door. "Derek? You here?"_

_She walked down the small hallway to the living room. Her eyes grew wide at the sight of dozens of flowers that littered the room all white roses except one bright red one sitting in the middle of the biggest group. She wasn't someone who like the gesture of red roses. It wasn't flowers that she didn't like. It was red roses. She thought they were too cliché and obvious. Walking over, she pulled the flower out. A ribbon was tied midway down the long stem. Her eyes moved down the ribbon to a sparkling, platinum, diamond ring. Following it further, she noticed the card at the bottom. Opening it, she read what it said. 'Will you marry me?' _

"_Will you marry me, Mer?" Derek's voice came from behind her. _

_She turned to look at him speechless for a second. "I don't know, Derek. I'm not marriage material… I can't get married now. My mom… Seattle…"_

_Derek couldn't help but smile at her ramble as he touched her arm. "Just say yes."_

She shook the thoughts away as she glanced around the area that was now filling with people.


	3. Nice To Meet You

Standing up, he made his way to the back of the line waiting to board the plane to the Bahamas. He wasn't quite sure why he chose the Bahamas. There was nothing there for him. He knew nobody there. He never had been there. Maybe that's why he had chosen it. Nobody would be there to ask him about Addison or question him about his life.

The lady standing by the door checked the ticket and instructed him to sit in 107B before allowing him to get onto the plane. He looked at the numbers of the seats in first class before stumbling upon his seat. His was the aisle seat. The window seat beside him was empty, and he really hoped it would stay that way.

But about three minutes later, a petite lady walked down the aisle of the plane with a small carryon bag over should. She was the kind of woman that made every man take notice. If it were under any other circumstances, Mark would too. But right then, all he could think of was Addison.

She stopped right beside him. "Excuse me." She said quietly before slipping past his feet and settling down in the seat beside him.

The stewardess came over the overhead speaker. He glanced over at the strange woman to see her looking out the window lost in her own thoughts. Sighing, he leaned his head back and allowed his eyes to shut. It was going to be a long trip.

--

People in front and behind them were talking and laughing or sleeping. They were the only too who sat silently deep in their own thoughts. They had taken off and been in the air for twenty minutes before he looked over at the woman sitting beside him. He surprised to find soft tears rolling down her cheeks. She was still starting out the window with her head rested in one hand. Turning his head away before she caught him looking, he rested his head back and shut his eyes. But when he heard her sniffle and choke back a sob, he looked at her again.

"Are you alright?" He asked quietly.

She jumped at the sound of his voice and quickly tried to wipe the tears from her eyes before looking at him. It was the first time she really had looked at him. He was really good looking with defined features, gorgeous eyes, and a strong body. But, his eyes looked trouble and saddened. "Yeah, I'm fine." She forced a small smile trying to force herself to sit up a little straighter.

He sighed. It felt like he should make conversation or something. But he wasn't sure what to say. So he said the first thing to pop into his mind. "Business or pleasure?"

"What?" She looked at him oddly.

"Are you going to the Bahamas for business or pleasure?"

"Neither."

"Neither?"

"I'm running away." She sighed turning her head back to the window.

"I know what that's like." She glanced back at him. "I'm doing the same thing."

Silence fell over the two strangers. She knew she shouldn't ask, but for some reason knowing that he was in a situation similar to hers comforted her some. "What are you running from?"

He looked over at her without lifting her head from the headrest. "My girlfriend of three years. You?"

"My ex-fiancé." She sighed. It felt good to talk to someone who didn't know her. She felt like she could say anything since she didn't really care if she was being judged. It wasn't like she would ever seem him, so she might as well take advantage of the situation and get all that was weighing down on her off her chest. He must have felt the same way since he didn't yell at her fro asking.

"Ex-fiancé, huh?"

She nodded. "I never wanted to get married anyway. He wasn't so content just being us though." She sighed as tears began to well in her eyes once more.

"Sorry." He didn't know why he was even talking to her. But she seemed to be offering a listening ear. So he might as well take advantage of it. "My girlfriend is leaving, because she doesn't think I'm ready for a family."

"Are you?"

"I could be." He sighed.

"He cheated on me. My fiancé, I mean."

"He cheated on you?" He repeated.

She nodded. "With his scrub nurse. I walked in on him in the on-call room."

"He's a surgeon."

"We both are." She nodded.

"I am too."

"What specialty?"

"Plastics, you?"

"Cardio."

"What's your name?"

"Meredith."

"Mark." They shook hands. "Nice to meet you, Meredith."

"You too, Mark." She gave him a short smile which he returned.


	4. Out Of My Life

They found themselves talking a lot of the flight if for no other reason than to keep each others and their own minds off of what was going on in their lives. They joked and even found themselves laughing lightly. By the time the stewardess came on the speaker announcing they were about to land, they knew quite a bit about one another. As they buckled their seatbelts, conversation hardly faltered.

"So where are you staying?" Meredith asked.

"I'm not sure." He shrugged. She bit her lip and looked to be contemplating something. It made him nervous as silence continued to hang in the air. "How about you?"

"My mother had a beach house down here." She answered, but she hardly stopped biting her lip long enough to do so.

"What's wrong?"

"Hmm?"

"You're biting your lip."

Subconsciously, she reached up and touched her lower lip. "Nothing." She wanted to invite him to stay with her. But that sounded crazy! They just met. For all she knew, he could be a murder that would kill her in her sleep than use her body parts as household appliances.

It wasn't long that they were on the ground and grabbing their carry-on bags from the overhead compartment. They walked off the plane and through the crowd in silence. Once they were in a clearing, he stopped and turned to her.

"It was really great to meet you, Meredith." He said with a small smile.

"You too, Mark."

"I hope things work out with Derek and all."

She cringed at his name but he didn't seem to notice all that much. "You too with Addison."

He gave her a small, sad smile. "Thanks. I'll see you around."

"Yeah." She gave him one last smile before he turned and walked away, out of her life.

--

He pushed the door open to his hotel room. Throwing his bags on the floor, he stepped in shutting the door behind him. The room was expensive as to be expected. It was huge with beige painted walls and a pattern painted in brown along the top of the wall where the wall meets the ceiling. The king-size bed was fluffed and covered with a light brown comforter with the same pattern as the one on the walls. A dark desk sat in the corner, and a matching chest sat at the end of the bed. A TV sat on a table with its DVD player on top of it. A bathroom was to his left and a walk in closet to his right. French doors led to the balcony, and the door across from the bed led down the hall to the ice machine that he and three other rooms shared.

Sighing, he fell back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. Thoughts of Addison mostly passed through his head at a million miles per hour. Every once in a while, Meredith cross his mind, but then Addison would come in and kick her out. He liked to think of Meredith. She was cute, nice, understanding, and beautiful. Addison was gone. She left him. He wished thoughts of Addison would end.

He needed the mini bar.

--

Her mother had brought an upscale townhouse not far off the beach when Meredith was seven years old. Her father had just left, and Richard was starting to move into their lives. But, Meredith had only been there a few times since she had school, and her parents had surgeries. She opened the door to the townhouse. The living room was a pale green color with white trim. Sheer green curtains hung over the windows hardly keeping any light out. Cream colored couches and matching chair sat centered around a light brown coffee table and TV.

She set her things on the ground and walked into the kitchen. She wished she had beer or tequila, but knew there was knew there would be none. After opening and shutting many cabinet doors, she found a bottle of red wine. Her mother was probably saving it for a special occasion.

"_But this is an emergency situation."_ She thought as she opened the bottle. She discovered her mother's stash of wine glasses and poured a generous amount into one before walking back into the living room. She lied back on the couch kicking off her shoes in the process. With her head propped up on the arm of the couch, she sipped her wine and stared at the painting on the wall. She tried to sort through what she was feeling about the whole Derek situation. But it was too hard to think about. She needed to drink.


	5. Breakfast

The next morning, she was awoken by the screeching sound of her sell phone

The next morning, she was awoken by the screeching sound of her sell phone. Instinct told her to hit the ignore button and try to force herself back into slumber. Instead, she forced herself to reach over and bring the phone to her ear without moving from her position on her stomach with her chin holding her head up so she could talk into the mouthpiece.

"Hello?" She answered groggily.

"Meredith." Hearing his loud voice made her very aware of the throbbing hangover headache.

"Uh… hey, Dad."

"Where are you? Derek called me in a panic saying that he couldn't figure out where you went off to."

She rolled onto her back with a sigh. "I don't want to talk about him or to him."

"Where are you?" His voice was laced through his voice.

"I'm in Nassau… at Mom's townhouse." She sighed rubbing her temples.

"What? Why the hell are you there?"

"I don't want to talk about it. When I'm ready… I'll let you know. But for now, don't tell him where I am. I…" Tears her eyes, but she quickly tried to get rid of them by roughly rubbing her eyes. "I don't want him to know where I am. I can't deal with him now."

"I'm confused."

"Please, Dad."

He could hear the pain in her voice. Maybe he didn't know what was happening, but he had to protect his baby girl. "Alright, Mer. Call me and Mom. We're worried about you."

"I will. Love you. Bye."

"Love you too. Bye."

--

He woke up the next morning earlier than he ever had without having to work. He hadn't slept at all the night before even after consuming way too much alcohol. He kind of hoped to drink himself into a coma. Then he wouldn't feel so… helpless and sad. He showered quickly and changed into a pair of loose jeans and t-shirt. After looking over the room service morning, he found nothing that would nurse his hangover. So he willed himself to leave the hotel room, even though lying in bed and cracking open another beer seemed like the best thing to do. He stopped by the check in desk and asked for a good breakfast place. The restaurant sat around the corner from the hotel. The outdoor patio was closed in by a white iron fence. Blue-green table cloths blew in the wind held down by place settings and the vase of purple and white flowers. Waitresses wearing black skirts that fell to their knees and white short-sleeve blouses walked around carrying pitchers of water, tea, and juices and pots full of coffee. A lone male waiter carried plates of eggs and waffles.

He walked through the already open gate and waited to be seated. The hostess sat him near the fence. The chair across the table was empty. The waitress took his order for coffee and orange juice and left him along to look over the menu. His appetite wasn't great, but he hadn't eaten since he left New York and figured he might as well try to get something in his stomach.

--

There was nothing in the house. No hangover breakfast. No coffee. Nothing. After showering, she changed into a pair of jeans and a loose-fitting top. After grabbing her sunglasses to shield her from the light that would certainly further the pain of her hangover. She listened the distant crashing of the waves and the snapping of her flip flops under her feet. People walked by busy in their own worlds as she kept her head low trying to nurse the pain radiating from the front of her head and from behind her eyes. Not far down the street, she stumbled upon a little breakfast place. A white, iron fence lined the property, and tables with blue-green table cloths and vases of flowers were set up around the outdoor patio. She saw many waitresses dressed slightly formally but comfortably for the heat, but from what she saw there was only one waiter pacing around.

She stepped through the gate and waited for the hostess to come over. Her eyes wondered around the patio before they settled on a familiar man sitting at a table near the edge of the property. He was sipping a cup of coffee staring down at the bagel they had brought for him to munch on while he waited for his breakfast to come.

"Just one?" The hostess asked.

"Actually, I think I have a table." She said giving her a smile before walking towards the table. "Mind if I sit?" She asked.

"Look, Lady, I'm not in the mood. I mean…" He lifted his head and a smile stretched across his face. "Meredith."

"Been having a lot of women coming up to see you today."

"Just don't feel like being bothered."

"I can go."

"No, sit. I'm glad we ran into each other."

"Me too. It was really nice talking to you yesterday. It kept my mind off of things."

"Yeah, same here."


	6. I'll Be There For You

They talked for a long time well after they finished their breakfast. They talked about work and plans they had while they were in the Bahamas mostly. It was nice to keep each others minds off of their current home situation. He was glad for the distraction as was she since beyond an empty house or lonely hotel room the only thing they would be returning to, other than an empty house or lonely hotel room, was their thoughts.

Mark glanced around the area to find all the people they had come in with had long since gone. "I guess we better let them use this table, huh?"

She looked around and nodded. "I guess so."

He waved over the waitress. "Check please?"

"Separate checks or together?"

"Separate." Meredith said at the same time as Mark said. "Together."

She looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

"Allow me." He offered holding out a credit card. "Together, please."

"It's fine. Really."

"It's fine." He waved the waitress off and leaned onto the table.

"Thank you, Mark. For the breakfast and the conversation. It was really great."

"Yeah, it was." He smiled.

"I'll see you around?"

"Definitely."

"Good."

"Bye." She gave him a smile before turning to walk off.

He felt like he needed to stop her. He wasn't sure why, but he needed to. "You could call me." He offered just as she was about to approach the gate to leave.

"What?"

"You could call me if you want to talk." He repeated as she walked back over.

A smile appeared on her lips. "Yeah. I'd really like that."

The waitress dropped the check off to be signed but he didn't move to get it. Instead he opened his wallet and withdrew a card. Taking the pen the waitress left, he wrote his cell phone number.

"I'll call you." She smiled.

"I hope you do." He returned the smile. "See you later."

"Bye." She turned and walked away.

--

She had looked at the number twice already contemplating calling. She had nothing to do and missed their conversation. Just talking to him seemed to make her smile. But she couldn't explain way. Up until three days ago, she loved Derek. Sure, she didn't want to marry him, but she still loved him. It wasn't like she loved Mark or even was interested in getting back into the dating game just yet. But she enjoyed his company even if they had just met the day before. It was nice to have someone in the area going through the same situation as her or a similar one at least. They both were running for their ex-fiancé or ex-girlfriend. They were both trapped in the situation with no simple remedy or even a temporary fix other than not talking about it.

She had memorized the card by the third time she picked it up to possible call him. Looking at it, she opened her phone only to close it. After staring at it for a few moments, she opened it again and dialed the cell phone number.

"Hello?" He answered on the second ring.

"Hi. It's Meredith."

"Hey." His voice seemed to lighten up from the sad, perplexed, drained voice he answered the phone with.

She sighed and lied back on the couch as a smile produced itself on his lips. "Hey."

"I was hoping you'd call."

"I hope right now is a good time."

"Of coarse. There's nothing else to do."

"Good."

--

She finally hung up when his phone was dying after three hours of talking. She felt like a teenager spending hours on her phone. While they talked, she had cleaned up the kitchen and dusted some of the furniture. It was dinner time, so she had invited him for pizza which he gratefully accepted. They made plans for him to come over at six, she gave him directions, and they hung up.

She had just finished ordering the pizza when her phone rang. Thinking it was Mark who had gotten lost even though it was only up the street from his hotel, she answered without looking at the caller ID.

"Meredith? Thank god you answered." He sighed. "I was so worried."

"Go to hell, Derek." She snapped. "I'm hanging up now."

"No, Meredith, please listen. It was a mistake. It meant nothing…"

"No the mistake was ever agreeing to an engagement that neither of us wanted."

"I love you, Meredith." He pleaded. "Please come home. And we…" She snapped the phone shut before he could finish the statement. She wasn't sure if she could laugh at the irony in the situation or cry at the deception. Burying her face in the nook of her arms, she let out something between a laugh and a cry. How ironic is it that he was the one who wanted an engagement when she was content at just being what they were and he was the one to break it?

It wasn't long until the door bell rang. She wiped her eyes from the few tears still lingering and went to answer the door. Mark stood on the other side.

"What's wrong?" He instantly asked.

"Nothing."

"Really?"

"Derek just called." She shrugged and sighed.

"What did he say?"

"Everything you'd expect him to."

He quickly engulfed her in an embrace. "I don't usually do this so you should consider yourself lucky." She smiled against his shoulder. "I know we just met and everything, but I'm here if you need to talk."

"Right back at you."


End file.
